Donor Acknowledgment Letter Generator

Year-end donor letters, from your gift list, in a minute.

Paste your gifts, one row per gift. Enter your organisation. The page writes one letter per donor with the wording a donor needs for a gift of $250 or more and the quid pro quo statement for a payment over $75 that bought something, lists the gifts that cannot be written up as they stand (a pledge, a refund, a missing date, a gala ticket with no value), and gives you a printable file with one letter per page.

The list is read in this browser tab and never leaves your device. It helps you write the letters; it does not decide what a donor may deduct. Check the wording with your treasurer or tax adviser before sending.

1. Your gift list

A CSV or pasted spreadsheet range with a header row. Columns recognised: donor, address, date, amount, type (check, card, cash, non-cash, vehicle, pledge), description (for property), goods or services (what the donor received), benefit value (your good-faith estimate), fund, receipt number.

Choose a CSV file …or paste the list

2. Your organisation

Organisation name

EIN (optional)

Address (optional)

Tax year of the gifts

Signed by

Title (optional)

Extra paragraph (optional, printed before the signature)

Only intangible religious benefits were provided (religious organisations)

Choose a file or paste the list, then click Write the letters.

Result

Donor	Gifts	Cash	Letter

Preview

Donor

Findings

Print only donors who need a letter ($250+ gift, property, or a payment over $75 with a benefit)

The rules it applies, and what it leaves out

$250 or more, per gift: a written acknowledgment states the charity, the cash amount or a description of property, and whether goods or services were given in return. The $250 test is applied to each gift, not to a year's total.
Over $75 with something back: the letter gives your good-faith estimate of what the donor received and says only the rest is a contribution. A row that says something was provided but gives no value is left out until you fix it.
Property: described, never valued. Vehicles are pointed to Form 1098-C.
Left out with a reason: pledges, volunteer time, refunds, zero amounts, gifts in another tax year.
Timing: the donor needs the letter before filing; send before January 31.
Not decided: whether a gift is deductible, the value of property or of a benefit, whether you are a qualified charity, state registration and receipt rules, donor-advised-fund and matching-gift paperwork, or what your board policy requires. The wording follows IRS Publication 1771 (Charitable Contributions: Substantiation and Disclosure Requirements); read it, and the organisation signs what it sends.

Common questions

What does a donation acknowledgment letter have to say?

For a single gift of $250 or more, IRS rules (IRC 170(f)(8)) look for the charity's name, the amount of cash given or a description of any property (without a value), and a statement of whether the charity provided any goods or services in exchange, with a good-faith estimate of their value if it did. This page writes that wording for each donor. It is not tax advice; IRS Publication 1771 is the source.

When does a donor need the letter?

By the earlier of the day they file their return and the return's due date with extensions, so April 15 of the following year at the latest. Most donors file in February, so aim to send letters before January 31.

Is the $250 rule per gift or per year?

Per gift. Separate smaller gifts are not added together to reach $250. A charity may still send one annual letter that lists them all, and this page does.

What is a quid pro quo disclosure?

If a donor pays more than $75 and gets something back (a gala dinner, a premium), the charity must tell the donor in writing that only the amount above the value of what they received is a contribution, and give a good-faith estimate of that value. The page asks for the value and refuses to write a letter without it.

Should a charity put a value on donated property?

No. The letter describes the property and states no value; the donor decides the value. Vehicles worth more than $500 have their own form, Form 1098-C, which this letter does not replace.

Is the donor list uploaded anywhere?

No. It is read in your browser and nothing is sent; a test in the code asserts there are no network calls.